What are the things over which we have complete control? To begin with, I think we have complete control over the goals we set for ourselves. I have complete control, for example, over whether my goal is to become the next pope, a millionaire, or a monk in a Trappist monastery. Having said this, I should add that although I have complete control over which of these goals I set for myself, I obviously don’t have complete control over whether I achieve any of them; my achieving the goals I set for myself instead typically falls into the category of things over which I have some but not complete control.
We should spend time and energy setting goals for ourselves and determining our values. Doing this will take relatively little time and energy. Furthermore, the reward for choosing our goals and values properly can be enormous. It seems that at least one key to having a good life is to value things that are genuinely valuable and be indifferent to things that lack value. We have it in our power to assign value to things, we have it in our power to live a good life. By forming opinions properly—by assigning things their correct value—we can avoid much suffering, grief, and anxiety and can thereby achieve peace within ourselves.
OK, so “correct values”. That’s where the audience comes down hard: “What is a correct value? Isn’t that tyrannical?”
The only answer to this is to ask about what criteria are being used to define “correct value” for one’s self. Perhaps those criteria are where to begin, then– what are my criteria for assigning value to things? Instant pleasure? No negative consequences to the things or people I care about? That’s a tough one.
